In China, telecommunication companies and meteorological authorities are cooperating to create a new early warning system, reports the China Daily. With this system, text messages can be sent directly to the population in case of orange or red warning. Micro blogs are also used. For example, more than 600,000 have subscribed to the Guangdong Meteorological Bureau’s blog.
These moves were pushed by the heavy rains of this weekend in China. With the recent memory of the July storm which killed 79 people, the Beijing government reacted strongly this weekend with 1,500 flood-control workers kept on duty while Mentougou's authorities evacuated risky areas.
On Saturday, a blue warning of heavy rain was issued by text in Beijing and most residents were supposed to have received the message. However, testimonies seem to demonstrate that the messages were not received by all residents. Put to the test during this weekend's torrential rains, one resident said, 'I appreciate what the government departments have done to protect us, but I am hoping they can do better, like guarantee that everyone in the city can receives the text message.'
Last week's heavy rains have caused floods, affected around half a million people and destroyed thousands of homes.